Making Customer Demos an Experience to Remember

By Jess Hill, Application Support Analyst, Marval

Last week I attended SITS17, the Service Desk & IT Support Show in London, as part of the Marval Team. I was there on both days, holding technical demos to visitors of our stand; presenting Marval MSM’s enhanced functionality and new features, and discussing their challenges and any particularities their organization could have.

Having direct discussions with Service Desk professionals is always illuminating. As I work on a busy, global Service Desk, I interact with customers all the time. I get their feedback, I hear about the challenges they are facing (which, I must say, are very similar to mine) and I work closely with them on improving their customer service. Our customers are familiar with our ITSM platform; their inquiries are usually about how to make the most of it, so they can deliver an even better service.

Discussing with industry professionals who are not MSM users provides a completely different insight, though. Whether they have never used a similar platform before, or are looking to replace, upgrade or just compare their current ITSM tool, or want to transform their Help Desk into a proper Service Desk, these professionals usually have a very vague idea of what to expect from Marval MSM; therefore, demos tend to be more of an overview, leaving the event visitors with a few unanswered questions.

That’s where I employ my experience as a Support Analyst, to help our stand visitors not only get an overview of our ITSM platform but also visualise how it could work in their business environment. Having talked with uncountable customers from different vertical industries, I appreciate that different market sectors may have completely different priorities. Most Service Desk professionals are not looking for an “one-size-fits-all” product. They are looking for a customisable, flexible solution that will be able to support the specific things their organization (or market) considers important. It could be reporting. It could be compliance. Or it could be fast resolution of requests. Or a solid Self-Service. They may not know how to ask for it, but they will know it when they see it. Instead of going for a standardized demo, I ask the right questions and then try to create a personalised experience for the visitor, where they will feel that their needs are covered, their expectations are fulfilled and their time with Marval is actually well spent.

At the end of the day, people won’t remember every single detail about a product’s functionality. They will remember, though, how engaging, personalised and rich their experience was. Being a member of Marval’s Global Service Desk myself, I share this culture that we need to customise our approach and make our customer feel welcomed. It’s what makes all the difference in customer service, and it’s what made a difference in our demos, too.